


Escape Room

by Koharu_An



Category: Dangan Ronpa 3: The End of 希望ヶ峰学園 | The End of Kibougamine Gakuen | End of Hope's Peak High School
Genre: Gen, Minor Original Character(s), Original Character(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-08
Updated: 2020-02-08
Packaged: 2021-02-27 20:47:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 19,043
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22612045
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Koharu_An/pseuds/Koharu_An
Summary: This story takes place before Danganronpa 3: The End of Hope's Peak High School Future Arc, in the old Future Foundation headquarters.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 1





	Escape Room

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this one over a year ago. Never meant to publish it, so try to go easy on it. Thanks for reading!

\- Minami Ayami, Minami Ayami. Please report at headquarters management, room 902. Minami Ayami, Minami Ayami. Please report at headquarters management, room 902.   
The announcement echoed through section C, where Minami Ayami’s office and lab was. She didn’t want to obey, yet she knew there was no choice. At Future Foundation one didn’t simply ignore a summoning to the headquarters management. She rebelled against it in the only way possible.  
\- Fucking hell, what for!  
Ayami took a quick check that everything was safely in its place in her work space before locking it up behind her and heading towards the room 02 on the ninth floor of the management section. Just before the elevator reached the ninth floor, the announcement played again, this time presumably in the whole building.  
\- Great, you had to tell everyone just ‘cause I took a few seconds too long in getting here.   
Ayami huffed with a desire to kick the elevator door. A desire she didn’t give into. Instead, she got out and walked into room 02 where she was met with someone she didn’t expect. The vice-leader of Future Foundation, Munakata Kyosuke.

Ayami stepped into the room to properly face her top tier boss and the first glance into his cold eyes told her something was amiss.   
\- Minami Ayami reporting to headquarters.  
\- Minami, you are under arrest for conspiring with the enemy, the vice-leader said flatly, his voice devoid of any feeling.   
\- What… Ayami started to speak with an enraged voice that matched the expression on her face.  
\- Silence! Munakata’s loud and sharp voice sounded merciless now.  
Ayami didn’t dare speak again. She couldn’t move a muscle and only stared at the person in front of her. This was as bad as it could get. Her disbelieving rage started to turn into a growing fear.  
\- I will escort you to your new quarters. I cannot allow you to have any contact with anyone other than myself. If the charges against you are true, you might be able to influence them somehow.  
Ayami broke out from her stupor and lowered her gaze to the floor. She didn’t want to look at the face of someone who had become her worst nightmare in seconds. Munakata noted the change in her and wondered if it could be interpreted as a sign of guilt, a sign of having been caught for a reason.  
Grabbing the young woman’s arm quite roughly with his hand, Munakata escorted Ayami through empty back corridors and a freight elevator down to the basement area, where they entered a heavily secured and small but surprisingly comfortable living quarters.  
\- This is where you will stay for an unspecified amount of time to come. It is well stocked with anything you might need. Apart from the bathroom, every part of this space is monitored and recorded 24/7. If you stay in the bathroom for longer than half an hour at a time, I will get an alert automatically. Do not make me come over and check on you without a good reason. I will see you tomorrow at 9 in the morning for your first interview.  
And then Munakata simply walked out and locked Ayami inside. Outside in the corridor, walking away, he rubbed his forehead and let out a long sigh. In the middle of a war this was a complication he didn’t welcome. He wasn’t even sure exactly how to deal with it. He feared he would never be able to gain a certainty that Minami was clean of the charges. There would always be a nagging doubt.  
Even more he was worried about the fact that he wanted her to be guilty, so this problem could be quickly and easily dealt with. Because if Minami wasn’t guilty, someone else had sneaked the enemy into Future Foundation.  
Inside the prison cell Ayami took two steps to the chair next to the door and sat down to it. She didn’t want this to sink in, but it was starting to. Zetsubou had gotten its claws to her, she thought, albeit not in the way she had anticipated. Ayami squeezed the armrests with her hands.  
Someone had put her in this situation on purpose, she was certain. She was now a means to someone, a means to divert the vice-leader’s attention from something else that was going on behind the scenes. She needed to put a stop to it, quickly. But how?

It was 8:27 am. Munakata was feeling confident that he would have the upper hand in this situation and that he had a fairly decent structure for the first interview mapped in his mind. He walked to the door of Minami’s detention quarters. He knew very well he had scheduled the interview for 9 am, but he wanted the element of surprise. And so he opened the door into a space that was completely empty.  
Sitting on the toilet seat of her new bathroom, Ayami heard the door open. “Shit!”, she thought and started to laugh. This was too crazy to be true. “Why? Why?”, Ayami kept thinking while the giggles kept erupting out of her mouth. Finally she was able to stop laughing, so she cleaned herself up and walked out of the toilet. But seeing Munakata’s face made her laugh again and she backed her way into the toilet once more and closed the door.  
Munakata stood in the middle of the room after having heard a burst of laughter coming from the bathroom, seeing Minami come out for a second and go back in again. He walked away to the opposite end of the room and sat down to the small dining table and put his file on top of it.  
\- So much for the element of surprise, he mumbled to himself and tried to keep his mindset intact.  
After some time, Ayami came back out from the toilet, managed to control herself this time around and walked to sit at the table Munakata was already seated at. She opened her mouth to say something, but then remembered the clear-cut order from the night before to stay silent and closed her mouth again. But this time Munakata gestured to her that she was allowed to speak.  
\- I apologize for that. Your early arrival took me by surprise. And I was in the middle of… umm...   
Munakata nodded and stayed silent, his eyes scanning the fragile looking teenager on the other side of the table who was again looking down. They both stayed silent for a while but when it became clear that Ayami wouldn’t continue on her own, Munakata decided to open the game.

\- As I told you yesterday, you are detained for questioning based on allegations of conspiring with our enemy. We both know that this enemy can no longer be specified to be a certain person or organization. You could be completely on your own, and still be affected.  
Ayami lifted her gaze and looked at Munakata to face up to her newfound enemy whom she wanted to help.  
\- I’m guilty as charged. Ayami’s voice was even, her appearance calm and collected as she continued to speak. - I’m very surprised I was found out. There isn’t any evidence anywhere, I’ve made sure of it. It’s all in here, she tapped her temple with her index finger.  
\- May I ask what gave me away?  
Munakata kept a flawless poker face when he took a small note from the file he had and placed it on the table in front of Ayami. - You did leave evidence behind, Minami.  
Ayami looked at the note that had been scribbled down with shorthand and looked at Munakata with a shocked expression on her face, her calm confidence gone.   
\- This? THIS?! Are you joking?!  
Ayami screamed, crumpled the note into a ball and threw it at Munakata who wasn’t fazed by such a childish tantrum. The agile girl was quick to jump up and grab the chair she had been sitting in, but not quick enough to throw it back down on the floor like she had intended.  
Munakata moved even faster, gripped her arms with a steely force before she had a chance to lift the chair higher up in the air. Ayami lost her grip and the chair clattered down to the floor.  
\- Stop right now Minami or I’ll kill you without a second thought.

The warning in his quiet voice was a serious one and Ayami knew perfectly well that Munakata was capable of fulfilling his threat. And even though a quick death had been the exact result Ayami had been aiming for just a moment ago, her survival instinct together with Munakata’s natural authority took control of her and she froze at his command.  
They stood there for a long time. Tense, still, silent and waiting. Neither looked at the other, all they were doing was struggling to calm down, to slow their breathing, to back away from the fight.  
Finally Munakata let go of Ayami’s arms, turned her chair back into an upright position and rounded the table to sit down on his chair.  
\- Sit down. Let’s try to get through this without any further incidents, shall we? Munakata’s voice was still lacking any kind of compassion. Surprisingly it didn’t even have a hint of annoyance either. For a moment Ayami wondered if he was a real human anymore.  
\- So what is this note exactly, Minami? Munakata placed the crumbled note back on the table. Ayami looked at the note and sat back down as well. There was something so commanding in the man opposite him that made further lies impossible.  
\- It is a note my science teacher gave me when I graduated from sixth grade in elementary school. To be more precise, he gave me a book when I graduated the class and the note was inside it. He told me that one day, if I studied hard, I would understand the writing in the note. But I never studied hard enough to understand the note myself. After a couple of years I had it translated by someone who knew shorthand writing. I don’t remember the exact words anymore but it was something about knowledge, working hard and life leading me into great things. Have it translated if you want.  
\- I see. And your confession just now?   
\- I thought it would be quicker for you if… Ayami shook her head and looked at Munakata apprehensively.   
\- Quicker and easier for me too. It is the most likely outcome of this anyway.  
\- Perhaps. But Minami, it’s not the certain outcome. Don’t you think that your life means enough to fight for it?  
To Ayami’s ears Munakata’s voice wasn’t as devoid of feelings it had been before. But before she could grasp anything recognizable in it, the moment was gone and she thought she may have imagined it.  
\- Not if fighting for it puts everyone else’s lives at risk. And you shouldn’t try to be my defence lawyer. Just… just try to get this over quickly. I don’t care what the result is.

There was a flash of anger in Munakata’s eyes at the defeated tone in Ayami’s voice that was mirrored in the look on her face. The anger came through in his next words too.  
\- Well I do care what the result is. I’m not going to execute someone innocent. And I’m going to investigate this until I know for sure.  
\- There might never be a certainty though, Ayami replied with caution.  
\- I know that!  
Ayami startled a little at the raised voice. And and there was a silence. Munakata was thinking how this interview was definitely not going according to his plans. Ayami was wondering what to do now that her own plan had been so easily crushed by Munakata’s authority.  
\- Ask me all the things you want. I’ll answer whatever the question is. If you’re…   
Ayami’s voice broke a little. - If you’re sticking up for me even a little, I more than owe it to you by cooperating in any way I can.  
Munakata nodded, and felt a slight sense of relief inside him. This whole mess hadn’t disappeared anywhere, but now he would be able to continue on with his original plan. He felt more grounded, not so lost at the sea of unpredictable turns of events.  
\- You are the ultimate toxicologist. And you have your own laboratory in section C. Tell me about what you are working on right now.  
\- I’m working on the poison produced by poison dart frogs. How they create their poison is unclear, but that’s not what I’m trying to figure out. I’m collecting poison samples from different specimens with different controlled diets and trying to find consistent differences in those collected samples. Yesterday…  
Ayami rubbed her temples. - Yesterday, before I was called in, I was doing desk work. I did not have any contact with the frogs that day.   
Ayami showed her hands to Munakata. - Poison free, so you do not need to worry. And if they weren’t… well then it would be me who had to worry. Ehm, in any case… it is a work in progress. So far the different poison samples have been somewhat consistent, but not fully to have a satisfactory result yet. If the poison samples can be differentiated based on each frog’s controlled diet, I will begin a more in depth study on each poison category. Maybe later on I could try mixing different poisons together and see if anything interesting can be created.  
\- And what would this “anything interesting” be?  
The look on Munakata’s face was very suspicious, almost hostile, but his voice remained the same, emotionless and flat as was his way.  
\- A substance mix that does not exist in nature on its own and cannot be procured from just one animal in lab surroundings either, but can be created artificially using technology and chemistry. I mean, binding two or more already existing poisons from different animals in an attempt to create a completely new poison. That new poison can then be studied and tested in lab surroundings. For example how it reacts to different cell samples and how it affects them.  
\- Does someone assist you in your research?  
\- Yes, sometimes. But not on this project.  
\- Then who? And when?  
\- Higashi Tetsu, the ultimate biochemist. But he does not assist me very often. Only when I request his help, and only if he happens to have time from his own work. Higashi-kun’s lab is a few doors from my lab. We collaborated more about five months ago when I researched the poison of Komodo Dragon, a lizard species, to see if I could find something new in it that other researchers haven’t picked up on. Higashi-kun chose to study that poison’s effects that lower blood pressure. He hoped it could be developed into withstanding physical shock and effects to the body caused by zetsubou, so the human body could better fight against zetsubou. But I think he abandoned the project as ineffective. I don’t know what he’s working on now.  
\- What about Kimura Seiko?  
Ayami laughed a little. - Well, she’s my division leader as I’m sure you know. Between me and her, if someone was doing the assisting, that would be me assisting Kimura-san. But she has never asked for my assistance. Sometimes I wonder why she even invited me to this place...

\- And do you know Yasui Noriko? Munakata kept shooting questions almost as if he wasn’t paying any attention to the answers Ayami was giving him.  
\- Yes, but who doesn’t know the ultimate socialite. She doesn’t much care for science circles from what I know, so I don’t have the good fortune of being friends with her. We’re not even acquainted. If you asked her who I am, I have a feeling she wouldn’t know.  
\- You’re right, she doesn’t know. But she’s the one who reported you.  
\- I… I see.  
But Ayami didn’t see, didn’t understand at all. How would a social butterfly be interested in her lab, or in her stacks of books. Interested enough to look for a note inside one of them. How would she even get in her lab? Or anyone else for that matter. The disbelief was visible on Ayami’s face.  
\- How did she…?  
Munakata was silent and stared at Minami expectantly.  
\- How did she even get in my lab? I always lock it, the security in Future Foundation is impeccable. And the book where the note was inside, it’s just one in dozens of books in there. And the note has been inside that book for a long time. It’s been a couple of years at least since I last opened that book or looked at the note.  
Ayami’s voice was frantic, her worry almost palpable.   
\- You have to… Ayami paused, suddenly scared to try and give orders to the vice-leader, but couldn’t let it pass.  
\- You have to make sure that nothing else can be disrupted in that lab, ask Higashi-kun or someone else you can trust to secure it. Get rid of all my research if you need to. Neutralize the lab so no-one can use it for anything… bad.  
Ayami was close to tears, not for her work but for the thought of someone misusing her incomplete work to harm others.  
\- I’ll take that under consideration.  
Munakata’s voice was cool as always and Ayami got even more upset. The vice-leader of all people should know what was at stake. Why wasn’t he doing anything? The young woman got up and started pacing on the floor.  
\- Something has to be done to make that lab safe, and you’re the only one who can!   
Ayami nearly shouted at Munakata, while the white haired man contemplated how much information could he reveal to the suspect. He had to give something away to get this firecracker to calm down a little so the questioning could continue.  
\- I do have more information about this whole situation than you do, Minami. No outsider has been in your lab in the last few weeks at least. A computer program is checking the surveillance all the way back to the time when you started here, but it will take a few days. In the meanwhile, your lab has been completely sealed off. The only one who has access is me. So calm down. We need to continue.  
\- But the note was found in the lab, someone must have… Ayami felt like Munakata didn’t understand what she was trying to say.  
Munakata raised his hand to quiet Ayami down. - No, the note wasn’t found in your lab. Sit down again, so we can continue.  
There was a hint of agitation in the man’s voice. He didn’t want any further interruptions to his carefully planned interview.  
Ayami heard the strain in his voice and sat down. It was difficult to internalize that she was a suspect of something treacherous. She had so many questions now, but even if she asked them she wouldn’t get answers. Instead, Munakata would think she was trying to obstruct his investigation. So she waited.

\- Tell me about your day yesterday, before you were summoned to the headquarters. Your movements within the Foundation, who you spoke with and what you spoke about.  
\- I left my room in the dormitory building at about 7:45 in the morning. I headed straight to my lab, greeted a few people I saw on the way, but didn’t talk anything more with them. I entered the lab a couple of minutes before 8 am and started working on my research diary, typing in the scribbled notes from the previous evening, and adjusted my research plan a little bit. Around 10 am I left the lab, went to the entrance hall of section C to get a coffee from the vending machine. There is a vending machine closer to my lab too, but I wanted to stretch my legs a little. I didn’t see anyone on my way there or on my way back. But... When I came back to the corridor where my lab is at, I saw Higashi Tetsu’s lab door close. I assumed it was him going in, but I didn’t actually see him, just the door closing. I didn’t think anything of it, just walked past his door and went back into my own lab and continued with the notes.   
Ayami paused for a moment to see if Munakata had any questions about what she had told up until now, but the man kept staring at her with a stony face.  
\- Soon after noon I left the lab again, to go for lunch at section C cafeteria. There was a bit of a commotion there, a group of ten or so people standing near the door. They were surrounding someone, but I don’t know who, and they were kind of loud. I just went to get my lunch, sat down at a table as far away from them as I could. I had my back turned at them, so I don’t know what they were doing. And with everyone talking at the same time, I don’t know what they were discussing either. I had my lunch rather quickly because of the restless environment and loud chatter of that group of people and left.  
\- On my way back I saw Higashi-kun, he was headed to the cafeteria. He asked what I had chosen to eat and if it was any good. I told him I had omurice and it was alright, but nothing especially delicious. He wished me a good day and I told him not to work until exhaustion. We parted ways, I went back to my lab… Oh, I stopped by in the toilet near the elevators and then went back to my lab. And the next time I left my lab, it was when I was summoned to headquarters. I didn’t see anyone on my way there.  
There was a long silence, while Munakata thought about what he just heard. - Did you wear your lab coat when you went to get coffee, or when you went to the cafeteria?  
What difference does that make, Ayami thought, but tried not to let it show. - No, I didn’t wear my lab coat until after lunch, when I started preparing to check on the frogs. I didn’t finish those preparations before I was called in to headquarters though, so I never checked on the frogs.  
\- Alright. Did you leave any piece of paper on your tray at the cafeteria?  
\- Yes, the receipt for my lunch. I never take it with me, I don’t need it for anything. And, umm... two napkins. I think I took two of them when I was getting my lunch, I’m not completely sure.  
\- What did you take out of your pocket?  
\- Oh, that… a chewing gum. I always chew gum after a meal. I guess I left the wrapper on the tray too. Or did I put it back in my pocket? I can’t remember. I can check if you want. Or you can check, the jacket is right over there, Ayami replied, pointing to the clothes rack.  
\- But the used bubble gum itself is in the trash bin in my office. It’s probably not the only one in there, and I can’t tell which used bubble gum is from which day.  
Ayami couldn’t help sounding sarcastic, having to explain about something completely irrelevant in so much detail. Munakata sounded to cough at Ayami’s remarks, or at least he hoped he had been able to mask his short and gruff laugh. He couldn’t afford to be seen as unprofessional.  
\- I’m going to need to double check all the relevant information you’ve given this morning.  
Munakata stood up as a sign that the interview was over. - After your laptop has been checked, I’ll bring it here. I know it’s not the same as working full capacity, but you can at least draft future plans for research or… something. It’s obvious that I can’t bring anything else here. Certainly not your frogs.  
\- I understand. I hope we… I mean, I hope you can get to the bottom of this fast.  
\- So do I. I’ll come back tomorrow morning. I’m not sure if I’ll interview you again, but I will check on you at least once a day. And the emergency button works if there’s anything.  
\- Of course.  
Munakata stalled a little, trying to figure out if there was something else he should tell Minami, but nothing came to mind and so he walked to the clothes rack, checked the pockets of Minami’s jacket and found the chewing gum wrapper.  
\- Ah, so it was in my pocket then, Ayami said just to say something but then she remembered something else. - Oh, Munakata-san?  
The stern white haired man turned his head back towards Minami. - Yes?  
\- If you think it’s alright, could you contact Takeda Isao? He’s the ultimate zoologist… maybe he could look after my research frogs?  
\- I’ll think about it.   
With that, Munakata walked out the door. Ayami sank her head into her hands the moment Munakata closed the door behind him.  
\- He sure is one white viper snake… Can’t like him, but have to respect him.

The first thing Munakata did after the interview was visiting Minami’s lab. He looked at the tidy and orderly office with approval. The bookshelf was located in one quick glance, and it took less than two minutes to find the correct book. Munakata took the book into his hands, quickly leafed through it, and found a shorthand note between pages 46 and 47.   
He photographed the note between the pages it was found in and returned the book and note within to its rightful spot on the shelf. He then took the laptop from the desk, and out of impulse a small koala plush toy as well.  
Finding the note had pushed Munakata’s thoughts into disarray. Minami’s guilt was less certain right now, though because of her past she still remained a suspect. She could be playing, a copy of the note was easy to make. If she was working together with someone, she could easily be a purposeful distraction to take up Munakata’s time, and someone else could be using that to advance zetsubou from inside the Foundation.  
He needed to call up a meeting. He left Minami’s lab, walked back to his office in the headquarters and sent out an urgent meeting invitation to Future Foundation’s leader and the division leaders he personally trusted, for the same evening.   
After taking care of the most urgent things in his normal schedule, he left his office to confirm some things that Minami had stated during the interview.

Late that evening Munakata couldn’t find sleep. The meeting he had called hadn’t helped anything, quite the opposite. Everyone had a different idea on what should be done. Juzo wanted Minami dead, just for being suspected. Chisa wanted to help with the investigation.  
Future Foundation leader Tengan had however made the final decision: Munakata had to take care of the investigation on his own and it needed to take priority. In return, Tengan took over Munakata’s most important work at the time: the recently started construction of the new headquarters.  
Munakata felt he had been placed in an impossible situation. What he would have wanted was Juzo’s help in this. He was the best there was in security related matters. If only there was a way to combine Juzo’s expertise and Chisa’s kind and helpful personality into one person. And a permission to get help from that combination.  
Munakata let out a sarcastic laugh. It was foolish to think of something like this, wishful thinking wouldn’t get him anywhere. If he wasn’t going to get any sleep, he might as well continue with the investigation.  
The tall, white haired man went to take a quick and cold shower to get his head back into working order. Before taking off to the basement level, he took a quick look at the real-time footage in Minami’s detention quarter.  
She was still awake, doing something in the kitchen area of the room. That was good, he wouldn’t have to wake her up. Grabbing his ready packed briefcase with him, Munakata headed out.  
By the time Munakata got to Minami’s door, the woman inside had snuggled up on the sofa with a comfort food sandwich and some ice cream waiting in a small bowl along with a cup of hot chocolate. The vice-leader hadn’t lied about the rooms being well stocked. Ayami felt like a luxury prisoner. She laughed at the thought. Things were bad, but they could be worse.

Hearing the door open, Ayami looked towards it with a surprised expression when he saw Munakata stepping in. - Element of surprise right there. Glad to see you. There was something I wanted to say, but I decided to wait until your next visit. It was hardly an emergency, so...  
Munakata didn’t reply, but instead walked to the sofa, placed his briefcase on the coffee table and sat down on the opposite corner of his prisoner, facing her.  
\- So what is it then? Let’s hear it.  
If possible, Ayami looked more astonished and expecting another questioning she put her sandwich on the table. - Well, I think… Sorry, I don’t know, it’s up to you. But should you be focusing on me? If I’m the bad guy here, then you’ve already caught me. But if someone else is, then dealing with me is just taking up your time and leaving them to run free.  
Munakata gave Ayami an icy and slightly dispising gaze from his blue eyes. - You think I haven’t thought of that? But what if you’re collaborating with someone. Then you know who that someone is. You might slip something out without meaning to, during questioning. Or what if you are the only bad guy, and your plan is already in motion. The only key to stopping that plan would be you.  
\- Ok, makes sense. But if you suspect that, why are you giving your strategy away?  
Munakata allowed a small smirk to appear to the corner of his mouth. - Because I already know you’re not involved. And I have the proof I need. But…  
Munakata’s expression turned a little darker. - You’re not going to like hearing what that proof is.  
Ayami’s face had looked happier hearing the good news from Munakata, but uncertainty returned to it with his latter words.  
\- Did I do… something else I wasn’t supposed to?   
\- No, nothing like that. You didn’t know this, but for the past few months, ever since you worked together with Higashi Tetsu on that project with those… lizards. Since then he’s been stalking you. He has your lab bugged, he’s had a direct access to your work laptop and he had two of your purses and your briefcase bugged and GPS tracked. Your room at the dormitory wasn’t tampered with, apart from those purses and the briefcase that you surely took there from your lab sometimes. He has countless photos of you in his lab and in his room. He has so many logs he has kept of you whereabouts, your interactions with other people. It seems impossible that anything suspicious on your part could have escaped him.  
\- What? Why would he do something like this? I’m not sure I even believe that, it sounds like something you could easily fabricate and I have no way of verifying this. He hasn’t done anything… stalkerish to me, at all. Ever.  
\- He has though. You simply didn’t know he was doing it. Wait…  
Munakata reached his hand into his briefcase and took out a file with a few photos from Higashi’s laboratory and living quarters. It showed the dozens of photos taken of Ayami in different places, but most of them during her workdays at the laptop, using her own webcam.  
Seeing the photos Ayami’s expression grew angry. - Did he say why?  
Munakata looked uncomfortable and didn’t want to look at Minami. - I’m not completely certain about his reasons. He said he hates you, that you ruined the project you worked on together. That he spied on you to catch you with something that would get you in trouble, but that he hadn’t found anything yet. I don’t fully believe him, but apart from what he told me I don’t know about his motives. In any case, he has been detained as well.  
Seeing Ayami’s fear on her face, Munakata decided that a little leeway was necessary. - He’s not held anywhere near you, not anywhere in this area. I would never allow something like that. After this all is resolved and he’s not needed as proof, his employment with Future Foundation will be immediately terminated.  
During Munakata’s account, Ayumi sat listening quietly. When he finished with a hint that she was being kept safe, the young woman looked at him with a humble expression.  
\- Thank you, Munakata-san. Thank you for… so many things.  
\- I have one more thing for you.  
\- It’s not something bad, is it? Ayami tried to shield herself emotionally from more problems and it showed on her face. Munakata surprised himself by smiling at her again.  
\- No, just someone who must have been missing you.  
Seeing Minami’s puzzled expression, Munakata reached into his briefcase again and pulled out the koala plush toy he had found in the young woman’s lab and handed it to Minami.  
\- Koa-kun! Ayami’s voice sounded happy and she snatched the koala into her hands to rub it against her other cheek.   
\- Thank you!  
\- You’re welcome. But imagine that, a white viper snake bringing you a gift.  
\- Oh no, you heard that too… Ayami tried to hide behind the koala, unsuccessfully.  
\- I did watch the interview from a recording to confirm a few things, and I wanted to see what you did right after the interview. It’s good to know you at least respect me.  
Munakata’s face looked almost friendly. - Are you going to be alright if I go now? I’ll come back tomorrow, and I’ll have a favor to ask of you.  
\- Can’t you ask for that favor now?  
\- Why not, I suppose. We need to keep this up.  
Ayami expected Munakata to elaborate but he didn’t. - I’m not sure I follow you.  
\- You staying down here. Someone did set you up, without you playing a part in it. Whoever it is can’t find out that I no longer suspect you. I’m sorry, but I just can’t let you walk out yet.  
\- I understand. It’s alright. I’ll try to take it as a… vacation. I’ll try to do some things I usually don’t have much time for. Not travelling, but…  
Ayami couldn’t keep a short laugh from escaping her mouth at her own faked cheery tone of voice. - I’ll think of something. And I’m alright. I’ll have to think about all of this for sure, but I’ll be fine. You should go and get some sleep. You look like you need it.  
Munakata smiled, like it was suddenly a perfectly normal thing for him to do. - I’m sure I do. I think this conversation helped both of us forward.  
Munakata stood up and started walking towards the exit. - Good night Minami. Whatever else you find in the briefcase is yours to keep. And… I almost forgot. Takeda is looking after your frogs. But I don’t think he can maintain their specialized diet.   
Munakata didn’t glance back while talking and again just walked out the door.  
Ayami was left in the quiet room, her comfort food forgotten on the coffee table. She didn’t know what to do. There was nothing to do, nothing she could do. She looked at Koa-kun, her plush toy, in the face.   
\- Now what?

After a somewhat sleepless night, Munakata decided to focus on the video footage again. What had happened in the cafeteria during lunch? Who had put the note there and how had that person known to write an almost exact copy of the original one in Minami’s lab?  
Watching the tapes intently for a while, Munakata had managed to isolate the time frame where the note was placed on Minami’s lunch tray. It was right after Minami had taken the chewing gum from her pocket, put the gum in her mouth and the wrapper back into the pocket. She then left the table, and immediately after someone passed by her lunch tray, and placed the note there.   
The whole thing with the chewing gum had for some reason caught the attention of Yasui Noriko, the socialite who had earlier caused the commotion and gathering of admirers in the cafeteria. She had walked over to the tray, seen the note, and alerted security.   
Was Yasui working together with the person who had put the note there? As a constant guest in TV-shows, v-logs, fashion magazines and so forth, she was very influential, unofficially. If Yasui was corrupted by zetsubou, then she had the means to subtly spread it everywhere around her.  
Arresting Minami or Higashi was one thing, but the news of Yasui being detained would spread everywhere like a wildfire.   
Munakata tried to get a good view of the person placing the note on Minami’s tray from every angle in the surveillance footage, but he couldn’t catch anything to identify who it was. There was always someone else in the way as the cafe had been unusually crowded that day because of Yasui’s presence. He tried to eliminate as many people as possible, people who it couldn’t be because they were elsewhere inside the cafeteria. But there were still a few too many possibilities, from lunch guests to staff members.   
Still he wrote down the names of everyone who it might have been. Eight names. He would have to go through all of them, without them knowing about his investigation. But first he contacted some people who knew the teacher who had written Minami’s note in the first place, years ago.

Early in the afternoon Munakata’s phone beeped a specific tone he had set up a day before. An uncharacteristic small smile appeared on his face even before he read the message.

“Hi there! Found this phone in the briefcase you left here, so it’s mine now. Don’t worry, I’m not going to flood you with messages, just wanted to let you know I found it. If you have questions where you don’t have to see me face to face to ask them, you can ask me this way and save a trip down to the dungeon. But I’m sure you thought about this a decade go already or something. Oops, this is getting long, sorry. Have a good day, see ya!”

-What a little brat she is… Munakata laughed a little and it felt surprisingly good.  
\- Who’s a brat?   
Munakata turned around hearing the voice of Sakakura Juzo behind him.  
\- No-one.   
Juzo looked like he didn’t believe Munakata for a moment and his voice became accusing.  
\- Warming up to your little prisoner, are you? Sure that’s a good idea? Maybe someone else should take over this investigation. I don’t get it why the old man didn’t assign Kirigiri Kyoko to take care of this. She’s more competent in this area than you are.  
\- Don’t I know it. But if she started conducting an investigation here, everyone would notice it simply from her being here.  
Juzo grumbled at this because he had to admit Munakata was right on this point.  
\- Besides, it’s only a tactic. Minami conveniently believes I don’t view her as a suspect anymore. But until I find the person who actually placed that note, or if that note is even of any importance, she remains a suspect in my eyes.  
Munakata’s voice sounded harsh when he had to explain his actions to his friend.  
\- Which is why you giggle at her message like a little girl when you think you’re alone.  
Juzo’s face looked disgusted at the thought he had voiced. - Let me in on this case then. I could interview her and get the truth out of her in no time.  
Munakata wasn’t swayed by the threat of violence in Sakakura’s voice. - No. Tengan ordered me to take care of this alone. If I need assistance, I will send a request to him. But it won’t involve you interrogating the current suspect. Get it?  
\- Alright then. But I still think you’re making a mistake.  
\- We’ll see about that.  
Munakata turned his back on his friend who walked away with an angered expression on his face.  
Sakakura headed straight to the security center, drove out the chief and logged into the system. He couldn’t access the surveillance in Minami’s cell, only Munakata had access to that. And the possibility to access her cell through the system was also impossible.  
Sakakura however was the leader of security for a good reason. He had ways of getting into places most people couldn’t, access or not. He logged out and left the security center.  
During the day Munakata had made progress in checking into the eight people on his list. He also got a call back from Minami’s old science teacher. The old man seemed proud of his student, even touched to hear she still had the book and the note he had given her. And sorry to find out she was in trouble.  
The information he had about the note turned out to be very important, but as a result Munakata’s workload increased. However, after visiting Minami unplanned the evening before, he decided he needed a good sleep tonight and went to bed early, only to wake up a couple of hours later to a gut feeling that something was very wrong.

Ayami was sound asleep on the sofa she had again turned into a bed for the night. She didn’t wake up to the sound of the door opening and someone stepping in. The tall man walked silently next to the sofabed and looked at the 17-year-old girl with mixed feelings.   
If she was innocent, he would feel horrible about what he was about to do. But if she was guilty… There was no way they could take a chance on zetsubou spreading inside the Future Foundation.  
The dark haired man started to extend his hand towards the girl, when he suddenly felt a cold blade touching his neck and froze. He knew who had caught him, after telling him just hours ago to stay out.  
\- We’re going to walk out of here without a sound. Nod a little if you agree with me.  
The whisper against Sakakura’s ear was quiet but in no way gentle. All he could do was nod ever so slightly. The blade was removed from his neck, and footsteps followed him closely until both men were out of the room. Munakata used his access card to open the door and locked it behind them. Then the two men faced each other.  
\- Sakakura. I can’t even begin to understand why. Don’t you trust my capability to solve this?  
Sakakura’s face had a guilty look, yet the stubbornness remained. - It’s not that I don’t trust you or your methods. But have you even… It seems to me you’ve just chatted with her a little. You haven’t had a proper interrogation where you corner her and push her, attack her with your accusations, force her to reveal things.  
\- You’re right, I haven’t done that. Yet. I want the…  
\- Element of surprise, I know. You go on about it so much that it’s becoming your trademark. But you can’t wait for it forever.   
\- I know I can’t.  
Munakata placed his hand on Sakakura’s shoulder and patted the other man a couple of times, like a comrade that they were to each other.  
\- But I need you to trust me, that I will know when the right time for it is.  
They looked at each other square in the eyes.  
\- And I need you to believe me when I say that I’m not… somehow… taken by her. That’s ridiculous.  
\- I know, I know. It’s just that for a moment it seemed like… But I was wrong about it, I admit.  
\- Very well, I can see how it may have looked like that. Although you should know me better than that. Let’s get out of here, Juzo. I really need a good night’s sleep so I can bring this whole thing to a conclusion as quickly as possible.  
They took the elevator, left the basement area and headed off to their own rooms for the night. But as soon as Sakakura was out of sight, Munakata went back to the basement, back into Minami’s detention quarters and quietly seated himself at the dining table, staring at her sleeping form that was covered with a blanket. This had been a close call and he couldn’t let something like this happen again.

The morning finally dawned outside, although it couldn’t be seen from Minami’s cell. Still, she woke up early like she was used to. Rolling in her sofa bed stretching her limbs, her gaze brushed by the dining table. Ayami jumped up, out of bed and backed into the far corner with her blanket in front of her to cover her up a little. She had wanted to scream, but the shock kept any sound from coming out.  
Instead, she kept staring at the white-haired vice-leader who was sleeping at the table. In Ayami’s opinion these elements of surprise were really going overboard.  
Ayami crept silently back towards her bed, grabbed her clothes from the endboard and walked hurriedly but quietly to the bathroom. Her eyes never left the sleeping man until she was out of his line of sight should he wake up. She was almost expecting him to jump-attack her without a warning, like the white viper snake she had nicknamed him. Ayami quickly changed into the same clothes she had been wearing for three days already. Then she got out only to find out the man still sleeping at the table.  
What was he doing there? And when had he arrived? Why hadn’t he woken her up? Ayami’s eyes went wider when she saw he had his sword with him. Did Munakata intend to make her scared?  
If so, his tactic was working because now she imagined him attacking her with it. Bloody and brutal, so many painful wounds before the final blow that would end her life. Ayami went back to her bed and grabbed Koa-kun.  
It offered her a false sense of comfort. Munakata has brought it to her after all. He couldn’t have done that if his only intention was to have a bloodbath in this small room.  
Munakata opened his eyes and sat up sharply. He hadn’t meant to fall asleep. It took only a second to realize that Minami was already awake and staring at him from the far side of her bed with a wary look on her sleepy face. It was no use to pretend like nothing out of the ordinary was going on.  
\- Good morning, Minami. I’m sorry that I intruded like this. The meaning wasn’t to scare you or to spy on you at night in person.  
Ayami’s face looked horrified after Munakata had expressed a new threat that she hadn’t even come to think of.  
\- Then why…?  
Munakata still didn’t know if he should tell Minami the truth about last night. But how else to explain his actions? He opted for the truth, although he didn’t like having to explain himself this way, as if he was accountable for something. But he needed to rebuild at least some trust between them.  
\- There was a security issue last night. I won’t go into details, but one of the division leaders wanted to take over your questioning. I refused, but he found a way to enter this room anyway. Somehow I anticipated this, and I was already here waiting for him. I quietly escorted him out right away, and dealt with him. Then I returned here, just to make sure nothing untoward would take place again during the night.  
Ayami looked just as terrified as Munakata had anticipated. - I didn’t… I didn’t even wake up.  
At the thought of having been completely defenceless, and having a good guess who this division leader was, Ayami’s fears took visible form as she started crying.  
\- Sorry. I’m… sorry.  
Ayami got up and ran to the only private place available to her, the bathroom. The thin door wasn’t capable of hiding the sounds of Ayami’s sobbing or her efforts to stop them. Munakata felt like the progress he had made up until now was crumbling down fast.  
With an annoyed sigh directed at himself, he got up and used his keycard to unlock the bathroom and stepped in to find Minami sitting on the toilet seat, doubled over and her head buried in her hands.  
\- Let me… be... Please. I’ll… make this… stop. Soon.  
Ayami tried to talk between crying, and while Munakata understood, he didn’t agree. Instead he knelt down in front of her and started to stroke her burgundy colored hair gently.  
\- You have every right to feel scared. This whole situation, not knowing what’s going to happen to you. And then the last straw, hearing someone tried to sneak up on you while you were sleeping.  
Even in her shocked state, Ayami felt the slight compassion and comfort offered to her, and clinged to it. The girl’s sobs first lessened, then ended and she finally lifted up her tear-streaked sad little face.  
\- I’m not even an ultimate talent, you know. I mean, not like most of the people here at the Foundation. I couldn’t handle the school life and other students at Hope’s Peak. So I left after just two months and studied my specialty field on my own until Kimura-san sent me an invitation to join her branch in Future Foundation. I’m not… brave like you all are. I don’t even know how to fight with weapons or anything. I think…  
A few tears fell down Ayami’s face again and she wiped them off and turned her face away from Munakata.  
\- I think if I survive this, I’m going to leave the Foundation. All I ever do is run away from things. I think that’s my other ultimate talent. Running away from problems. And now there’s nowhere to run.  
Munakata had stopped touching Minami’s hair when she looked at him and started to talk. He had always been a fighter, someone to take responsibility, never to give up. He didn’t understand Minami’s perceived cowardice and couldn’t find anything encouraging to say to her anymore. Instead he slowly stood up from his crouched position.  
Suddenly angry at herself, Ayami slapped herself on the cheek, hard.   
\- I should stop pitying myself. And I should stop causing more problems.  
Unable to stay any longer in the small, enclosed space of the bathroom with Munakata, Ayami stood up from the toilet seat and marched out of the toilet all the way into the kitchen area.  
\- I’m going to make us some breakfast! What would you like to have, Munakata-san?  
Not sure what to make of Minami’s sudden change in mood, and deciding that he had had enough for now, the vice-leader walked out of the bathroom too.  
-Nothing for me, thank you. I’m heading out. If anything happens, you have the emergency button and you can message me too. I have to… never mind. I’ll check on you in the evening.  
It seemed like Munakata couldn’t get out of Minami’s cell fast enough. But only 20 minutes after leaving he got a message from her.

“Sorry to bother, but I just noticed that you left your sword behind.”

Munakata looked around the hallway he was walking in and seeing no-one he started swearing before sending a reply.

“Don’t touch it, you might hurt yourself. I’ll pick it up tonight when I check on you.”

“Too bad, I already touched it. I placed it upright next to the front door, so you can get to it first thing you enter. Didn’t cut myself, so no worries.”

Munakata decided to push the morning out of his thoughts and went ahead to trace the information Minami’s old science teacher had given him. The old man had given the same prize to the best student in each elementary graduation class he had taught. He had hoped that at least some of the students would be inspired by the book to seek a career in medicine. And the note was to keep them curious about things that weren’t so easy to figure out.  
The teacher had kept a list of those students, with the intention to follow up on what they were doing later in life, but he had never really gotten around to do that part.  
Having the list was very helpful though. With Munakata’s resources, it was easy to find most of them. Only one medical career, most were living an ordinary life. Or had been, until The Tragedy. Five were still alive. Two of those were known to be recruits of the Remnants. This wasn’t good. This wasn’t good at all.  
For all Munakata knew, there could be a network between the people who had gotten this seemingly innocent gift from a seemingly ordinary teacher. Maybe someone had tried to make contact with Minami, and she knew exactly what that message meant.  
The person who had placed the note on her tray may have thought she would come back to her tray. Or maybe it was meant for someone else. But why would that exact note make sense to anyone else in Future Foundation?  
Munakata sent photos of both notes to Shinobu Togami, the ultimate secretary, for translation. He kept his reasons very vague, without the smallest hint to what was really going on. He got a reply in five minutes.  
\- Efficient as always, Munakata sighed with relief and focused his attention to the translations. To his surprise, they weren’t exactly the same as he had originally thought.  
The note from Minami’s study said the following:

“You studied hard to be able to read this note. By now you must have noticed how your thirst for knowledge has lit up the path to wonderful discoveries. Continue on this road and achieve amazing things. 2010/04/10. ”

The note found on the tray at the cafeteria however had a small but at the same time a big difference:

“You studied hard to be able to read this note. By now you must have noticed how your thirst for knowledge has lit up the path to wonderful despair. Continue on this road and achieve amazing things. 2015/09/18.”

Munakata felt himself breaking out in cold sweat. A part of him had hoped that this was a stupid prank gone too far, maybe something Higashi Tetsu had plotted to cause Minami trouble. But because one note wasn’t an exact copy of the other and because of the words used in the new note, he was now sure that this was for real.   
At least two people inside Future Foundation had to be corrupt. The person who had placed the note on Minami’s tray, and the person who the note had been meant for. And the date on the new note was in less than two weeks.  
The vice-leader made an emergency call to Tengan. He needed a task force to find out who those people were, fast. And naturally, Munakata’s task force leaders consisted of the two people he had wanted to help him from the start. Sakakura and Yukizome received new orders and an information package about everything that had happened so far and what steps Munakata had already taken.  
Yukizome Chisa was assigned with a new background check on everyone who had come up in the investigation so far and could be considered potentially corrupt. And Sakakura Juzo was put in charge of the interrogations. First he would interview the eight people whose specific locations at the cafeteria couldn’t have been verified the moment when the note had been placed on Minami’s tray. Sakakura finally got to mercilessly lash out his hatred for zetsubou, though he wasn’t given permission to use his fists or a weapon.  
Munakata took it upon himself to search everyone’s work and personal rooms thoroughly. He started with Minami’s, but couldn’t find anything suspicious. Not a hint of shorthand writing anywhere, no guidebooks on the subject. Nothing to implicate a pending attempt to murder or mass murder by poison.  
Later on, Munakata’s search on one of the cafeteria staff members brought forth a new lead. Among many notes in the apprentice chef’s calendar, there was a marking named “delivery day” for the same day the note was found in the cafeteria. And another “delivery day” marking in the calendar four days later. One day after the scribbling on the calendar was “payday at the park”. After checking all the deliveries that had arrived to Future Foundation on that and previous week, none of them had been for the man in question or the diner where he worked. He alerted the Foundation’s internal post and delivery service to look out for anything unusual addressed for the next day, which was marked for the second delivery.  
The vice-leader chose to interview the apprentice chef’s colleagues himself because Sakakura was busy with other interviews. One of them remarked that the apprentice chef had been unusually willing to pick up used trays on the first “delivery day” when the note was placed on Minami’s tray. And picking up trays wasn’t even a part of his duties. It had been the first day ever during his employment that he had been so helpful.  
As a result, Sakakura received an urgent message about the sudden change in priority, and his interview with the new suspect brought forth results. The apprentice chef admitted right away that he was involved in something because he had been promised a monetary reward. He didn’t know what the note meant, what the plan was, or the other people involved.  
He was supposed to pick up the message from a tray on a specific date at lunch time. He had not been given a specific seat where the tray would be found or an exact time, just lunch time. He had marked it into his calendar. And the second calendar marking meant placing that same note in one of the aloe flower pots at the main entrance hall of the building tomorrow before 10 am. After that he was supposed to go and collect his reward from a close by park at 2 pm. Someone would hand it to him while passing by.  
When he hadn’t found the note that day, he had been nervous and left to wonder what to do. He didn’t have any instructions for things going wrong and there was no-one to contact. After a couple of days he had just figured that the whole thing had been cancelled. Or that he had been played for a fool.  
Sakakura also questioned the apprentice chef about Minami and the ultimate socialite who had both been somewhat implicated, and he answered that he didn’t know anything about them being involved. He didn’t even know who had bribed him to take the note and to deliver it elsewhere in the Future Foundation building.  
Munakata was so satisfied about this turn of events that he felt like he could almost howl in victory. But it was a little early for that, especially when they didn’t know what this network behind that one note was. How many people were involved? Were they even spreading zetsubou or was this something else?  
Pressed by Sakakura, the apprentice chef had agreed to deliver the message forward as he was supposed to do. And he would also go to his assigned place for receiving his reward. He would be followed by a team chosen by Sakakura, and the aloe plant in the lobby would be observed from all angles but hidden from view.  
The schedule of delivering the note gave very little time to prepare. And for now, Minami was forgotten about. After a long evening which involved gathering the tracking team, informing them of the game plan and preparing the apprentice chef on how to act normal in a situation like this, while wearing the latest spyware hidden in his clothes, Munakata finally went to bed.  
Before falling asleep, he remembered his promise to check on Minami. Cursing aloud in his room, the vice-leader sent the young woman a message saying that he would stop by tomorrow evening instead. There was no reply. Munakata concluded that Minami must be asleep already and also fell asleep without even a thought to take a glance at the live surveillance camera footage.

Everyone involved in the note operation were up very early in the morning, whether it was out of duty or frazzled nerves. The note had to be delivered before 10 am, so they had opted for plenty of time and decided to have the note in the flower pot at 9:20 am.  
The entrance hall was usually somewhat quiet at that time of day, which made the protection of the general public easier. The task force had decided not to alert anyone of the situation because it might alert the person who was coming to pick up the note.  
Munakata was observing the security footage of the entrance hall while Sakakura was overseeing the operation much closer to the site. The door to the security center opened and Yukizome Chisa walked in.  
\- So here you are! Glad I found you. Aren’t you unhappy to miss out on all the action? Yukizome laughed cheerfully and sat next to Munakata as if to watch a movie together.  
\- We can’t all be at the scene, giving conflicting orders. Juzo is the best person to handle it.  
Even though Munakata’s words seemed admonishing, he had a warm tone in his voice and a gentle look in his eyes when he smiled looking at his old high school classmate.  
\- You’re right, you’re right! Yukizome enthused and took Munakata’s hand in hers. - And at least we get to watch him catching one of the bad guys. Right?  
Munakata let out a laugh. - I don’t think it will be that dramatic, just a regular arrest. I’ve started to have a feeling this isn’t about zetsubou at all. If it was, we wouldn’t have obtained the information we now have this fast. Juzo went really easy with that apprentice chef, and he didn’t give any resistance. The whole thing has been too sloppy from the start to be zetsubou.  
Yukizome sighed deeply and happily. - Can that really be? That it’s not zetsubou? Oh, that would be so wonderful. We could all feel safe again.  
\- Yes, it would be really wonderful. Hey look, Chisa. I think they’re starting with the action!  
The vice-leader and the division leader leaned towards the screen in their seats. They didn’t want to miss one second of it.

Sakakura gave the last instructions to his team, and then commanded the apprentice chef to leave his rooms and make his way to the entrance hall of Future Foundation headquarters. The young man did as he was instructed. First he advanced rather cautiously, but because nothing at all happened on the way, he gained a little bit of confidence.  
At one point someone passing by tried to make conversation with him. He seemed a little confused at first, but came up with a quick excuse to continue his way to the destination. When he reached the entrance hall at 9:21 am, he went over to the vending machine, bought a drink and got his receipt. Then he walked around for a while, checking his watch as if waiting for someone. This was all for show, in case anyone unrelated would happen to be in the area.  
Quite soon he wandered next to the aloe vera. There he opened his drink, took a sip, and very unnoticeably placed the note under the plant’s leaves. Just as he had practiced a few dozen times last night and early in the morning with a different aloe plant.  
After that he walked around for a few minutes, and pretended to look a little aggravated for having been stood up by the made-up someone he was supposedly there to meet. After entering the corridor leading back towards the dormitory section at 9:38 am, he sped up his steps. The nervous feelings had returned, and he still had a second task the next day.  
Sakakura focused now on surveillance of the aloe plant. The minutes dragged on. A few people entered the hall, but no-one walked around or stopped anywhere, they were just going from one place to another. The aloe plant was left in peace until 10:12 am when one of the housekeeping staff entered to empty the garbage bins and to water the plants.  
When she got to the aloe plant, she noticed the note peeking out from under the leaves. Stomping her foot in annoyance, she picked it up and threw it in the cart with the collected garbage bags, mumbling something about people being too stupid to use the bins for dumping their trash.  
At that moment, a police officer in disguise entered the scene, walked straight to the housekeeper, showed his ID and gave her a command to leave the area. But before she did, he dug into her cart to retrieve the message and placed it back to where it had been. Then he left the entrance hall.  
After the housekeeping staff was out of sight, she was arrested without any commotion in the entrance hall.

\- Oh… I had thought it would be a little more exciting, Yukizome said and almost looked like she was moping a little.  
Munakata laughed. - I told you, just an ordinary arrest. We’re not living inside of an action movie after all.  
\- Yes. Could be even more dull if you ask me, and I wouldn’t complain. But at least my plant is involved in all this!   
\- Your plant?  
\- That’s right. Haven’t you noticed there’s aloe plants almost everywhere? I chose them as a theme throughout the Future Foundation. Aloe has so many healing qualities that I thought it would be a good theme. It’s not cheerfully colorful, but that’s why there are other flower arrangements too.  
\- I agree, though I can’t say I have paid much attention to them, Munakata replied. - But I’m glad there’s someone who pays attention to things like that. You should tell me about them more often.  
The pair smiled at each other in mutual understanding.  
\- Will Juzo be the one to question that housekeeper? I was just thinking if I should be involved.  
\- I was thinking he would take care of it, but that was before we knew who it was going to be. And I do think it would be useful if you were involved, you are her top tier boss after all. Let me inform him later. The operation is still ongoing, so he won’t be interviewing the housekeeper right away.  
\- Oh, sure! Just make sure he lets me know when I need to be there.  
Yukizome turned to look at the screen again for a while, but then stood up. - I think all the action is done and I don’t want to keep staring at the entrance hall all day. If something else interesting happens, I can watch later. I feel a little sorry for you, I don’t think you have a choice in watching.  
Yukizome giggled a little at the slight disappointment on Munakata’s face. -You know I’d stay just for you if I could. But I still have background checks to do.  
She lifted her hand to stroke Munakata’s hair once. - I’m glad I got to see you for a while Kyosuke-kun, it cheered up my day!  
And then she left the smiling Munakata alone with the security footage.  
\- You cheered up my day too Chisa-chan, he whispered to the empty room.

After five more hours of waiting and nothing more happening to the note, Sakakura organized a 24/7 watch in eight hour shifts for the time being. In the evening Munakata had a quick meeting with him about tomorrow afternoon, when the apprentice chef would be going through his second undercover operation.   
Neither one of the men had high hopes for its success. It would likely be another no show. If that was going to be the case, then all they had was the date 2015/09/18 on the cafeteria note and the elusive person who had left the note.  
\- You’ll have to give me a turn with Minami, Yuzo told Munakata in a serious tone.  
Munakata’s face suddenly looked alarmed. - Shit! Minami! I’ve forgotten all about her for two days now! Damn it, damn it, damn it…  
\- Go, and hurry up. I’m almost hoping she’s ok, so I can fuck her up.  
Sakakura’s crude comment was lost on Munakata as he had already turned around and was now running along the corridor towards the elevator.  
In Munakata’s opinion the elevators that had been built into this old headquarters were way too slow. On the way down he wrote a quick note about it with his phone. The new headquarters that was in the middle of construction had to have better elevators.   
After he finally reached the basement floor, he took off running again. Good thing that Minami’s detention quarters were only a few doors down.The vice-leader flashed his access card in front of the reader and stepped in. What he saw made his mouth fall open.  
Minami was wearing only her underwear, and she was dancing ballet quite gracefully even though there was no music to accompany her movements. After recovering from his shock, Munakata turned to face the door, and shouted.  
\- Put some clothes on, will you!  
A loud squeak escaped from Ayami’s lips when she had been yet again caught off guard.  
\- Can’t you ever knock on the door? she said and hurried up to find something, anything to wear. There was no reply.  
\- Alright, I’m decent now.  
Munakata turned around to face Minami who had quickly thrown a bathrobe around herself.  
\- Sorry for that. I guess I kind of momentarily forgot that I’m technically in jail. I mean…  
Ayami moved her hand in front of her from left to right. - This isn’t exactly a traditionally jail-like environment. And I couldn’t do any training in my normal clothes which needed a wash anyway.  
Munakata stayed quiet and just stood near the door looking at Minami.  
\- And I didn’t even know when you would stop by next, Ayami continued when the silence got too much for her. - You said yesterday evening, but you didn’t show up. And then nothing today either.   
Munakata opened his mouth to speak, but Ayami just kept going.  
\- I thought about sending you a message, but then I thought you must be busy with more important things, so… I would have sent you a message tomorrow if I didn’t hear from you, just a really short one. Should we...?  
Ayami finally stopped her flood of speech, realizing she wasn’t giving any chance for replies.  
\- I’m sorry for not checking on you in such a long time, Munakata replied with a voice that was a little gruff from being unused to apologizing.   
\- Hey, don’t worry. I’m alright. You can see that, right? No harm done.  
Ayami smiled in an attempt to help her highest level boss out of an uncomfortable situation. Munakata accepted the silently offered help by nodding and walked a few steps forward and looked around. Minami had kept the place neat and tidy. Just like her lab and dormitory room had been when Munakata investigated them.   
\- Is there anything you need here?  
\- Well… I don’t want to trouble you. Besides, there isn’t anything I really need. I mean, needing something and wanting it are two different things.  
Munakata thought that Minami’s voice sounded a little sneaky.  
\- But sometimes what a person needs is to get what they want. Isn’t that right?  
Ayami laughed a little. - Alright then, you talked me into it. Don’t worry, it’s not a big list. I would really love to listen to some music. So if it’s ok for me to have my mp3 player, that would be great. But if you need to check it and it takes too much time, then any music is alright. But more important than that… Can I have another set of clothes, please? So I can wear them when I’m washing the ones I’ve used for a few days.  
Munakata smiled at first and then furrowed his brows. Having some of her clothes brought to her should have crossed his mind earlier.  
\- Neither request is too much to ask. I’ll go get them both right now. I’ll be back in less than 30 minutes. Which outfit should I bring you?  
\- Oh, anything is fine. Why don’t you pick one for me?   
Ayami winked and smiled a little and Munakata’s face showed disdain.  
\- Stop trying to flirt with me, it won’t get you anywhere.  
Munakata turned to leave, but Ayami wasn’t finished with him yet.  
\- Don’t forget to take your sword with you this time! It’s right there by the door, like I told you in the message.  
Munakata didn’t reply anymore, but took the sword before leaving. And true to his word, he returned in 25 minutes with a small suitcase that Ayami recognized as her own.  
\- I asked one of the housekeepers to pack some things for you, so it’s more than just one outfit. You can pick out whatever you want to wear yourself. Oh, your work laptop is in there too. I promised to bring it earlier but never did.  
Ayami looked at the suitcase like it was a treasure of unimaginable riches and then she shifted her gaze back to Munakata.  
\- Thank you, Munakata-san. And sorry about before. It’s a little lonely here, but… I’m sure the music will help with that! I can at least hear someone’s voice once in a while, even though there’s no-one else in here.   
Munakata rubbed his forehead. There it was, yet another aspect he hadn’t really considered. Minami was trying to put on a brave face again, but the isolation was starting to take its toll on her. He knew he really shouldn’t do this, that it would cloud his judgement even more than it had already been clouded by this young woman.  
\- If it’s alright with you, I’ll stay a while. I can’t stay for more than an hour, there’s too much going on.  
Ayami looked at Munakata like a fan looks at an idol. - I’d be very happy to have some company for a while.   
\- But no flirting, Munakata reminded her and shot Minami a warning look.   
\- No flirting.  
Minami tried to look overly serious, but failed and had to struggle to keep from laughing.

The hour passed by comfortably. Ayami did her best to steer clear of any topics that Munakata could find offensive or otherwise irritating. But she couldn’t help but ask about his weapon of choice. The young woman found it fascinating how it was both traditional and modern. She confessed she was scared to touch the weapon and scared about what it could do to another person. She also said that it had been really heavy when she carried it the short distance inside the room, but that she found it to be a really cool weapon.  
Munakata found this an easy topic to discuss, and told her about the time when he had started learning swordsmanship and how long it had taken to become good at it. When the white-haired man asked Ayami about dancing, she blushed a little when she thought about how he had seen her with so little clothes on. But then she told him she had been dancing since childhood and how she was fairly good at it, but definitely not a professional. She was proud of her capability to dance on pointe shoes even though she didn’t have them here in the cell. Ayami went on to say that her parents had kind of hoped that ballet would have been her ultimate talent. She herself didn’t mind, because she didn’t really like to perform in front of people and as an ultimate toxicologist she didn’t have to.  
One topic led to another and there weren’t any uncomfortable breaks in the conversation. In the end it was Ayami who reminded Munakata about the time limit he had set. Before he left, they agreed that if Munakata failed to check on her by 10 pm in the evening, she would send him a message to let him know that she was alright. Just to make sure she would remember to do as she was asked, she set a daily reminder in the phone that Munakata had brought her.  
After the man was gone again, she opened her suitcase, looked for and found her soft and slightly worn pajamas inside, hugged the nightwear with a smile, and disappeared into the bathroom to take a shower and put it on for the night. After that, she turned the sofa into a bed again and slipped in with Koa-kun guarding her sleep.  
When he got back up to the headquarters, Munakata quickly checked on Minami’s real time surveillance footage to make sure she was doing alright after his visit. Seeing that the woman had settled down for the night, he closed the screen and gave her the privacy he believed she should have. He checked a few things to get ready for tomorrow and then went to bed. But before he fell asleep, his thoughts were still focused on Minami.

The next day crawled slowly onwards because everyone was waiting for the afternoon. This time the expectations were very low because of what had happened with the note just a day before. Munakata wondered if they had ruined the operation themselves. The apprentice chef had been detained ever since his part in all this had been discovered. He hadn’t been seen at his work or at any of the other activities he was usually engaged in. Someone could have noticed the absence and taken a step back.  
He shared these worries with his team and they agreed that it was a possibility they hadn’t come to think of early enough. But there was nothing that any of them could do about it now. The background checks that Yukizome had worked on didn’t provide any clues. Neither did the interrogations that Sakakura had conducted. All they could do now was hope for something to come along.  
The new operation was taken care of with even more care than the earlier one because this was happening outside of Future Foundation, at a public, although quiet, park. The main instructions given to the task force were to avoid casualties and to arrest the possible target alive for questioning. The assistant chef was a little less shaky this time around, and calmly waited near a small, white gazebo, his meeting point.  
The snipers had been in position for only ten minutes when an older man in a shabby business suit was approaching from further away. Everyone prepared for action, but the man simply walked by, not even speaking distance of where the assistant chef was waiting. Everyone let out a sigh and relaxed a little but that was a wrong move.  
After passing by, the older man suddenly turned around, drew a weapon from inside his jacket and shot the apprentice chef in the head, killing him instantly. When the man started running after seeing the successful result of his sudden attack, a whole Future Foundation task force came out of various hiding spots and confronted him with their weapons drawn, shouting at him to drop the weapon and get down on the ground.  
His reaction was to shoot at them while laughing maniacally. The task force had no option, but to open fire at him. Several bullets hit and the man fell down, the gun flying out of his hand. Badly injured, there wasn’t much they could do for him. The on site commander of the task force tried to question him while several others tried to stop the bleeding from two of the worst wounds, but the man was still laughing.  
\- Success! It was… a… success. Like… you said, tshhh…. shhh...  
Those were the only words he spoke out before dying of his gunshot wounds at the scene.  
Sitting inside the back of a white van, stationed on the far side of the park to oversee the events, Munakata and Sakakura heard everything through their radio system.  
\- So we failed then. Yet again. It will be very difficult to gain more information now.  
Munakata’s voice was angry. He didn’t blame the task force, he was simply angry at the whole situation. Angry at zetsubou. Sakakura took out his anger in other ways. He punched the side of the van, leaving a dent on it. Munakata briefly thought to say something about destroying Future Foundation property, but it felt ridiculous in the grand scale of things. Besides, he didn’t want to aggravate his good friend whose support he relied on.  
After getting rid of the burst of anger in a physical way, Sakakura grabbed his communication system. - Task force commander, task force commander. Gather your team and clean up the scene. I’m heading back to the base.  
\- Roger that, the commander replied.  
Sakakura closed the communication system, the two men exited the back of the van to move to the front and Sakakura drove them back to Future Foundation. Sakakura headed to his office to get a report to Tengan, Future Foundation leader and Munakata chose to go and inform Yukizome of the latest events.  
When the vice-leader entered Yukizome’s office, she was in the middle of searching information from a database of national health. She looked up and her eyes brightened seeing Munakata in the doorway.  
\- Come in, Kyosuke! Just the man I wanted to see!  
Yukizome flashed a smile but then she grew serious. - I have a lot of problems with Minami.  
Munakata approached Yukizome’s desk, took a chair and carried to the other side so he could look at the data together with Chisa. - What kinds of problems? Something came up?  
\- Nothing is coming up and that’s the problem. No information anywhere about what she did during the time between quitting Hope’s Peak High School and being recruited here at Future Foundation.  
Munakata thought about it for a little bit. - Have you checked the national library database?  
\- No I haven’t. Why would that be important?  
Munakata smiled. - Just humour me, would you?  
Chisa opened an unidentifiable connection to national library database and typed in Minami’s identification details. The amount of information was incredible. Free science lectures, dozens and dozens of borrowed books, constant bookings to the science laboratory and all of them paid for.  
\- You would have found this much quicker if you had hacked into her bank account, Munakata told Chisa.   
\- That’s where the best leads usually are. But… in one way this is my fault, I’ve been too wrapped up in my own tasks. At one point Minami told me she had been studying on her own all that time. I should have forwarded that information to you as soon as I had it.  
\- Ah, yes you should have. You would have saved a bit of my time. I was almost starting to think Minami is some kind of a mystery person who vanished and made a sudden comeback. I’m glad she’s not. Her ultimate talent is very risky, don’t you think?  
Yukizome sounded like all her worries had evaporated, but there was an undertone of frustration that Munakata didn’t catch on to.  
\- In some ways it is risky, I admit. But not more than her division leader’s or her close colleagues’. If we go on the path of suspecting people based only on their profession or ultimate talent, then I don’t think there’s much future for Future Foundation.   
Munakata sighed. - Of course there was reason to suspect her at first, but everything we have uncovered so far makes me think that her tray at the cafeteria was chosen by random. It could have been anyone’s tray.  
Yukizome looked unconvinced. - How do you know she didn’t choose her table based on the camera angles, and the crowd that happened to be there? She could have left the cafeteria at exactly the right moment when she spotted the person delivering the message. If she is zetsubou, she would never reveal those things to you in questioning.  
Munakata nodded to Yukizome, who continued to press on. - You know what zetsubou is like when it takes someone over. The person affected can seem perfectly normal and give believable explanations for their actions. What could be more ordinary than having lunch at the cafeteria? But in this case we all know it wasn’t the case of just having lunch there. And the two notes are too similar for her tray to be a coincidence.  
Munakata’s resolve about Minami’s likely innocence wavered a little. - I was thinking I should let Juzo have a turn at questioning Minami. What do you think, Chisa?  
Yukizome smiled almost like a mother to a child who has finally done something right. - I think it’s a good idea. I mean, it is not a normal questioning technique to have just one person asking the questions. Right?  
\- Yes, you’re right. Juzo already asked permission to question her. Looks like he’s going to get what he wants. I’ll go tell him.  
Munakata stood up and left the office. In his usual style, he didn’t look back. If he had, he would have seen Chisa smiling a creepy, victorious smile with an empty look in her eyes.

Sakakura was delighted with the news Munakata brought him. He briefly thought about asking permission to watch the tapes of Munakata questioning Minami, but decided against it. It would take too much time, so he would start from a clean table and make progress in his own way. But before he went on his way Munakata had something else on his mind too.  
\- After this is over with, this whole… problem. We need to sit down and review the security plans for the new headquarters. I know there’s no such thing as absolute perfection, but let’s try to get as close as we can. So nothing like this can happen again.  
Sakakura understood the vice-leader’s worry, and in his thoughts commended him for looking forward and wanting to improve things. He also appreciated Munakata’s willingness to consult him.  
\- That’s an excellent idea. But first, let’s bring this problem under control. Oh right, give me access to her cell.  
Munakata nodded at Juzo’s words and Juzo left to execute the plan he had been forming for a couple of days already. It was time to break down that girl’s defences.

Ayami had just started cooking some stir-fry for dinner in the tiny kitchen alcove of her detention quarters, when the front door opened.  
-I’m in here!  
Ayami’s voice sounded happy at the thought of getting some company. Last night’s conversation with Munakata and access to her music had helped a lot and her mood was much better even though deep down she was still very worried about her own situation and what could be happening in Future Foundation.  
The burgundy-haired girl turned around expecting to see Munakata, but found herself face to face with Sakakura Juzo and two other men in guard uniforms.  
\- Minami Ayami. I’m taking you in for questioning, was the only thing Sakakura told her in a threatening voice. He signalled the guards who grabbed the young woman by each arm and started dragging her out.  
\- Hey wait… wait!  
She struggled a little bit but the only response was a tighter grip on her arms.  
\- The stove was left on! Please close it, I don’t want a fire to start.  
The guards halted immediately, and the other one quickly returned to turn off the stove and came back to continue escorting Minami to the interrogation room located on the same basement floor.  
She was roughly pushed down to a chair in front of a table. Juzo seated himself facing her, while one guard stayed standing in a corner and the other one exited to the outer room to observe that the recording equipment kept working flawlessly.  
\- Minami Ayami, you are suspected of conspiring in an act to harm Future Foundation. Who recruited you?  
Ayami thought that if Munakata had seemed cold at first, then Sakakura was freezing to the point of being lethal.  
\- No-one recruited me, I’m not…  
\- Then you’re the one who orchestrated the whole thing?  
\- No, I’m not involved in anything.  
Sakakura laughed in a way that made Ayami’s face go pale. The dark green haired leader of the security division was pleased by Minami’s fearful reaction. Fear was a useful tool in many situations.  
\- Of course you’re not. That note just so happened to end up on your tray. And it just so happened to be almost like the one you have in your office. Come on, we both know you’re just pretending to know nothing. Who put the note on your tray?  
\- I don’t know.  
\- Who passed you by right after you left the table?  
\- No-one. I passed by a bigger group of people close to the exit…  
\- Who were they? Start dropping the names.  
Sakakura’s voice remained steadily threatening, and the fear caused by it muddled Ayami’s thoughts.  
\- There were too many of them, and…  
Sakakura’s fist flew down onto the tabletop, making the whole table shake. - I asked: who were they!  
The sound of the fist’s impact on the table and Sakakura’s loud voice startled Minami visibly. A few tears of fear started flowing down her cheeks and she started shaking slightly. Other than that she couldn’t move from the shock.  
\- I… I… don’t remember. I don’t remember.  
Ayami’s voice was reduced to almost a whisper and there was a begging tone to it.

Several floors up from the basement Munakata was watching the interrogation proceed. His heart felt a little heavy seeing Minami accosted. He was already second-guessing if this kind of strategy would bring any results. More importantly the vice-leader was starting to realize he may have made yet another wrong decision. Suddenly the earlier conversation with Chisa came back to his mind. What had she said about the cafeteria? When he finally recalled Chisa’s words, he felt sick to his stomach.   
“She could have left the cafeteria at exactly the right moment when she spotted the person delivering the message.” He had momentarily forgotten one of the facts shown by security footage: that Minami had been sitting her back to the entrance hall and most of the cafeteria. She couldn’t have spotted anyone coming in at a specific time. Also, the assistant chef had revealed that he hadn’t been given a specific time to pick up the message from the tray. So there was absolutely nothing to back up a claim that Minami had left the cafeteria at a predetermined time. While Chisa had been completely logical based on the information she had, it was he, Munakata, who should have known differently based on the information he had.  
His resolve of Minami’s complete lack of involvement in this case gained new strength. He had to stop Sakakura, before the interrogation went too far. Before he even registered his actions, Munakata was walking fast on the corridor towards the elevators.

\- It was only a few days ago.  
Sakakura’s voice had calmed down and there was even a hint of softness to it. The tone of voice enticed Ayami to look up at the formidable man. But his tone was swift to change back to accusing.  
\- Of course you can remember! Tell me their names! NOW!  
Sakakura pushed the table forward and it hit Minami in the arms and stomach so hard that the chair she was sitting on fell backwards and Minami fell down with it.  
\- Ooow, oh…  
The young woman ended up on her side in the fall, moved her body a little, but didn’t get up out of fear to be pushed down again.   
\- Sir…   
The guard that was still stationed in the corner of the room decided to intervene. - Perhaps you shouldn’t…  
That was more that Sakakura wanted to hear. - You, get out. Now!  
The guard didn’t want to receive the treatment of the accused, and left the room without a second thought. Sakakura stood up from his own chair and walked the few steps over to the girl.  
\- Can’t get up on your own? Here, let me help you.  
Sakakura bent down to take a strong hold of one arm and yanked Ayami up. It almost felt like her arm would rip from her body and all she could do was scream out her pain and then cry.  
\- I don’t know who they were. I don’t know. I just… don’t know.  
This was the scene that Munakata entered when he finally reached the observation room next to the interrogation room. He quickly used his access card to enter the interrogation room.   
Sakakura glanced towards the door, ready to squash whoever was disturbing his work. Seeing Munakata standing there with a furious look on his face, he reacted by letting go of Minami’s arm. The girl crumbled back down on the floor, holding her injured arm and sobbing. When the two men started arguing she slowly crawled away from them towards the corner, where she curled up against the wall.  
\- This interview is over, right now.  
Juzo had never seen Kyosuke this angry at him before.  
\- You never even gave her a chance to answer to you properly, or to try to remember who she saw in the cafeteria that day.   
\- I was still working my way to that point, Juzo protested.  
Munakata growled a little and pointed to Minami who was still cowering in the corner of the room. - Working your way to that point? Does she look like she’s capable of answering questions now? Does she?!  
\- No, Sakakura replied quietly after a while and looked down.  
\- Please leave now, I’ll take care of her.  
Sakakura obeyed Munakata’s command without question. As soon as the head of security was out of the room, Munakata walked slowly to Minami who was still sobbing quietly and crouched down.  
\- Minami, are you badly injured?  
Munakata’s voice was quiet and there was a hint of worry and caring.  
Ayami lifted her head to look at Munakata and shook her head. - Just my shoulder. I think it’s a bit badly sprained. It’s not dislocated. But… It hurt a lot when he…   
Ayami’s sobbing began anew. - Sorry… Sorry. I should be stronger than this.  
\- Don’t worry about that now. Can you stand up? If I support you here…  
Munakata wrapped his other arm around Minami’s waist and careful of her arm and shoulder lifted her up to an upright position.  
\- Do you feel dizzy? Can you stand on your legs or are they giving out?  
\- No… I’m fine. Thank you, Munakata-san. I don’t know what Sakakura-san would have done if…  
Munakata slowly released his hold, ready to catch the girl again if she started to fall back down, but her legs were steady enough. He took a step back.  
\- Listen, I’m going to walk you back to your detention quarters. Then we’ll get a medic to look at that shoulder. Alright?  
Munakata’s voice was quiet and calm on purpose.   
\- Yes, sounds good, Ayami replied subduedly and as soon as Munakata took the first step she did as well.  
Walking slowly down the corridor, they were almost at the detention quarter when Ayami suddenly stopped.  
\- What is it?   
There was some worry in Munakata’s voice again.  
\- He asked the right question, Ayami replied and looked at Munakata with a shocked look in her eyes.   
\- Sakakura-san. He asked if anyone passed me by right after I left the table I was sitting at. No-one did, but just as I passed by the large group of people, someone left that group to go to the direction I came from. And for a second she smiled at me directly. I don’t know if it means anything, she could have just gone to get her lunch. Although why would she have lunch at the cafeteria? Unless it’s a part of that “slumming with style” series in her blog.  
Munakata had an idea who Minami was talking about, but he needed a confirmation. - Who was it, Minami? Who passed you by and smiled at you?  
\- Yasui Noriko, the ultimate socialite. I don’t understand why I didn’t catch on to that sooner. You even mentioned her to me at the first questioning and I just didn’t… get it. She didn’t say anything, just smiled right at me.  
Ayami looked at Munakata like he should have the answer. But he didn’t have one.  
\- Alright. I’ll look into it as soon as I can, but first let’s get you as comfortable as possible.  
Munakata placed his hand against Ayami’s back for a moment and they made the last few steps back to her current accommodation. Munakata went to the kitchenette freezer to get some ice for Minami’s shoulder, while Minami positioned herself on the sofa.  
After the ice was in place on her shoulder, the white-haired man went for the first aid kit, but apart from basic pain medication and a triangular bandage, there wasn’t anything else useful. Munakata managed to tie Minami’s arm to a comfortable and stable position for her shoulder, and made her take two painkillers. Then he took out his phone to call a medic and a housekeeper on site. They arrived quickly by the command of the vice-leader and assured that they would take care of Minami.  
After exiting the room, Munakata made a call to Sakakura asking him to look into Yasui Noriko. Sakakura had her schedule of recent past and next four weeks and he needed to check again if there was anything that stood out. After that he called Yukizome because Yasui was positioned in her division. Chisa told Kyosuke not to worry, that she would locate Yasui right away and see what she was doing.  
After Munakata finished his call with Yukizome, Sakakura called him back. Yasui Noriko had cancelled all her appointments yesterday. She had cleared her schedule completely. And a quick security camera check had confirmed that she went into her dormitory rooms yesterday afternoon but hadn’t come out since then.  
Munakata cursed and asked Sakakura to meet him outside Yasui Noriko’s dorm rooms. She sent a message to Yukizome about it as well, then headed there himself.  
The three of them arrived at Yasui Noriko’s door almost at the same time. As they were already expecting, a knock on the door produced no results, so Sakakura used his master access card to gain entry.   
The first they saw was a pool of bloody water in front of the bathroom door. When they opened the door, they found Yasui in a bathtub full of water mixed with her own blood. She had written a message high on the wall with it. 

“The path to wonderful despair. Game over.”

\- The first part was in the note, Munakata said darkly. One more bad decision on his part, not looking into Yasui Noriko much sooner because of her socialite status and public influence.  
Yukizome had tears in her eyes. She told the two men that she blamed herself for not having noticed any signs of zetsubou in Noriko. The only kind of Noriko she had known was someone who tried to make the world smile at the silly things she did and shared with the world through her blog, v-log guest appearances and other media outlets.  
Munakata took out his phone, and took several photos of the message. After that he took a good amount of toilet paper from the roll, dipped it into the bloody water and smudged the message until it was unrecognizable.  
\- Not everyone needs to know that zetsubou managed to reach the Future Foundation, he said with resolution.  
The others nodded. If everyone knew, some of the ultimate talents would leave. In the worst case, having a feeling that nowhere was safe would cause more people to fall into the hands of zetsubou. The Future Foundation had to remain a place of hope. And safety was one way of creating that hope. Yasui Noriko would be reported to have died of natural causes. An unexpected cerebral stroke had caused her to act confused, which was why she had cancelled all her appointments. And a few hours after that she had died. Only a handful of people would know that wasn’t truly the case.

The next morning Munakata woke up as normal. He got up and got out there, hoping to tie the whole case together and put it behind him. First he checked on Minami, and this time he knocked on her door before entering. The young woman was doing alright, but still apologizing for that one detail she had missed when first telling about the day when the note had been found on her lunch tray.  
\- No, I am sorry, for two things. I allowed Sakakura to interrogate you without being present myself. That was my mistake. And another thing is… I still can’t let you out.  
Munakata looked calm, but there was a hint of sadness in his voice.  
\- I’m still detained? But…  
\- I have to wrap the investigation up first. I’ll try to get it done today, but I can’t promise that for sure.   
\- Alright, I can understand. And about Sakakura-san... Maybe it was needed, to knock an important piece out of me. I guess you and he did it together. Him by knocking me… well kind of. And you by giving me a little time to speak.  
Surprisingly to both of them Ayami grinned.  
\- I know, I’m being weird. I guess I’m glad to be alive. And I’m glad it was you who came through that door today and not Sakakura-san.  
Munakata laughed and tried to mask it as a cough again but this time it didn’t fool either one of them.   
\- If there’s nothing else, then maybe you should go. The sooner you wrap things up, the sooner I can leave this confined space. To see how my frogs are doing.  
Munakata nodded and turned to leave.  
\- Munakata-san…  
The man turned around to look at Minami.  
\- Thank you. Thank you for saving me from a beating that I was surely going to get. And… maybe you’re not such a white viper snake after all.  
\- Don’t count on that, Munakata replied and grinned at Minami before he left.

A meeting between Munakata, Tengan, Sakakura and Yukizome took place that day. They reviewed the whole case through. There still was no certainty on who had placed the note on the tray. The most likely candidate was Yasui Noriko, because her death message contained a piece of the translated version of the shorthand note. But there was no indication that she had any knowledge of shorthand or the message inside one of Minami’s books. And even if she did, the note alone wouldn’t have been enough to push her over the edge into zetsubou.  
The biggest question remaining was the date on the note. 2015/09/18. That day would be a few days from now. Was something going to happen? Or did the words “Game over.” in Yasui’s death message mean that the plan, whatever it was, had failed? There was no certainty, just different opinions.  
Munakata thought that the plan had failed but that there was a possibility that everyone involved hadn’t been caught. Like the person who the note was being delivered to. And because of this there could be an attempt of some new plan in the future.  
Sakakura agreed with Munakata’s theory. Yukizome was more cautious. They should wait for the 18th of September and prepare themselves for anything. Everyone agreed that extra precaution had to be taken, security measures tightened.  
The question of what to do with Minami heated up the conversation a little more. Munakata suggested that she would be released immediately.   
\- Why can’t she remain in detention until, say… September 20th? When we can be sure nothing is going to happen.  
Sakakura still thought Minami should stay locked up for now, and Yukizome agreed with him.  
\- Because if she’s a part of some plan and still wants to make it happen, then we should let her out, track her movements and catch her in the act.  
Munakata defended his view and Tengan nodded and said this was a good plan, and it was a point that won over at least Sakakura.   
\- But what about when September 18th has passed, if it turns out to be like any other day. Can we take her back into custody? The timing when she remembered her encounter with Yasui in the cafeteria was once again very convenient, as Yasui had just before… died. She remembered at a point when we could no longer interview Yasui.  
Yukizome chose to contend Munakata’s point, but Munakata wasn’t one to give in easily.  
\- No, that’s not a possibility. There is no proof against her, only a very vague suspicion. And that suspicion amounts to nothing if September 18th goes quietly.  
Yukizome put her hand on top of Munakata’s hand to calm him down a little. And even though she didn’t dare bring up Enoshima Junko as a reminder of someone who hadn’t been arrested on suspicion and ended up doing the worst things imaginable later, she still managed to strike Munakata with a vicious verbal blow while sounding genuinely concerned.  
\- Can you live with it if Minami will become involved in something later because you let her free now? I just want everyone to feel safe, Kyosuke…  
Munakata inhaled deeply and sharply and closed his eyes for a moment before moving his hand to break the physical contact with Chisa, and opened his eyes again with his signature cold expression.  
\- If I kept Minami permanently locked up on those grounds, I might as well lock up everyone on suspicion that they may someday do something bad.  
The vice-leader looked first at Chisa and then at Juzo. - I’m not going to lock someone up for the rest of their life without proof. If either one of you insists on contesting me on this, then you are free to leave Future Foundation. But if it comforts you at all, I’m not going to allow Minami to stay at Future Foundation after September 30th, even if nothing happens on the 18th. I can’t live with a constant suspicion of her either, not in this institution.  
Tengan rose to his feet to signal the end of the meeting. - Looks like a decision has been reached, although not entirely unanimously. I have to say it seems like fair outcome, considering the circumstances.  
Munakata followed Tengan’s suit, and marched straight to the security center, where Yasui’s electronic devices were being inspected. The crew on duty had nothing to report.  
Then he made his way to the basement for what he hoped to be the last time, and knocked on the door before entering.  
\- Minami, again I come with both good news and bad news.  
Ayami looked at Munakata from the sofa she was sitting on. - Again? I should be getting used to this, but… I’m not getting used to it. Tell me, I’ll just try to cope with it.  
Munakata sat to the other end of the sofa and took Minami’s healthy hand into his. - Yasui Noriko is dead.  
Ayami inhaled loudly and looked at Munakata in shock. - Was it…  
Ayami didn’t even want to say the words.   
\- Yes, and though I can never fully prove it, I believe she was the one who left the note on your tray that day. Minami… I’m going to have to ask that you don’t talk about this to anyone.   
Ayami looked down to her lap and then nodded. - I won’t, I promise. And… this is going to sound terrible, but… I hope this was the bad news?  
Munakata couldn’t help but smile, even though he knew that in some ways it was a serious question. Minami was still scared her fate would be similar to Yasui’s. Though not from zetsubou, but from him, Munakata.  
\- Yes, and the good news is that you’re free to go.   
The battle on Minami’s face was one Munakata would never forget. Happiness for her good news and sadness for someone else’s tragedy. Happiness won, just like Munakata had hoped.  
\- Let me help you pack. Can’t be easy with your injured shoulder.  
\- I accept, I can’t wait to leave this room. You know… This might be the wrong thing to say again, but during my time here I sometimes thought of this place as an Escape Room. You know those games people used to play, long before…   
Munakata nodded and looked at Minami with curiosity.  
\- I thought that I should just find the right clues to be able to leave. But instead of just struggling alone in here, there was someone on the outside of the room who was trying to help.   
Ayami squeezed Munakata’s hand gently before letting go of it. Then she got up and started to gather her things with one hand. Munakata took the things she brought him and packed them into her suitcase.  
\- One more thing.  
Ayami picked up Koa-kun from the sofa, approached Munakata and put the small plush toy into Munakata’s hands.   
\- This is for you. Maybe there will be a time when it will make you feel like you’re not completely alone.  
Munakata was touched by the gesture and couldn’t find anything to say. So he just held on to the soft toy, picked up Minami’s suitcase and the two of them walked out of the detention quarters together.

September 18th came. Until that day Ayami had been under constant watch. She knew it, but decided to bide her time and wait. Nothing suspicious happened. She took those few days to recover from her shoulder injury, but then went back to get her frogs and started her research work on them from scratch. But she didn’t really take her research seriously anymore.  
After a completely uneventful September 18th, Ayami called in to see if she could schedule a meeting with Kimura Seiko, her division leader. She was fitted in, and arrived on time. During the meeting she gave Kimura-san her thanks and her resignation, effective immediately. After Minami left Kimura’s office, the ultimate pharmacist called Munakata to inform him of this newest event. Munakata took immediate action and soon an announcement could be heard in the dormitory section of Future Foundation:

\- Minami Ayami, Minami Ayami. Please report at headquarters management, room 902. Minami Ayami, Minami Ayami. Please report at headquarters management, room 902.   
\- Fucking hell, not again!   
This time Ayami gave into her frustration and kicked the chair in her room that was Future Foundation property. Still, she wasn’t gone from the building yet and had to obey. She had no interest in getting locked up again.  
Running down the corridors this time, so the announcement wouldn’t be played in every part of the building, Ayami made it to her destination in time.  
\- Minami Ayami reporting to headquarters management.  
The burgundy-haired woman had known to expect Munakata this time.  
\- Please don’t tell me I’m under arrest again.   
Ayami looked like she was ready to fight tooth and nail this time and Munakata smiled seeing the fighting spirit she had at times lacked.  
\- No, you’re not. I don’t think I’d want to go through that again. I wanted to say goodbye before you leave. Are you really running away?  
\- Yes, but not for the reasons I told you about before. I have a confession to make.   
Ayami lowered her voice like she intended to tell a big secret.   
\- I never liked frogs. Or snakes, lizards and spiders. Or being a toxicologist.   
The young woman changed her voice back to normal volume.  
\- I’m going to pursue something I really enjoy and am happy with. Not just something I’m exceptionally good at.  
\- What are you planning to do then?  
Munakata was genuinely surprised. It was very rare for an ultimate talent to just abandon her talent like that.  
\- I’m going back home. My grandparents left me a small house a long time ago. I’ll have it renovated and find something I will love to do. I’m not sure what it is yet but I’m pretty sure I’ll find it.  
Ayami was smiling at the prospect of trying to find something to be happy about.  
\- That sounds like you have your plans set. I’m not going to try and talk you out of it. I just wish you all the best. And that you stay on our side.  
\- Of course I’ll stay on hope’s side! Even though I won’t be here. You have Koa-kun to remind you of that.  
Munakata smiled. - Yes, I have Koa-kun to remind me. But I think I’ve kept you long enough. I don’t want you to miss your train.  
Ayami started laughing. - Of course you know which train I’m leaving on. I’m sure you know the exact destination too. Or did you put a GPS on me?  
Ayami’s face looked suspicious, but Munakata’s expression was enigmatic.  
\- Who knows, maybe I did. But you really need to go now or you’ll miss your train.  
\- I know. I wish you and Future Foundation and everyone here all the best too. Take care of each other. Don’t fall into distrust.  
That was the last thing Ayami said before turning around and walking away from the management section of Future Foundation headquarters. She went to her room one last time to pick up her luggage, then left the building and walked the short distance to the station to catch her train.

The end.


End file.
